Gregory Peck: Difference between revisions

After about 50 plays in total, including three short-lived Broadway plays, four or five on road tours, and the rest during summer theater,<ref>"Circle of Concentration: Gregory Peck in an Interview with Gordon Gow" in ''Films and Filming'', September 1974. https://www.theactorswork.com/2013/04/films-and-filming-gregory-peck.html</ref> Peck was offered his first film role, the male lead in the war-romance ''[[Days of Glory (1944 film)|Days of Glory]]'' (1944), directed by [[Jacques Tourneur]], alongside top-billed ballerina [[Tamara Toumanova]].<ref name="autogenerated589"/> Peck portrayed the leader of Russian guerrillas r]esistingresisting the Germans in 1941 who stumble across a beautiful Russian dancer (Toumanova), who had been sent to entertain Russian troops, and protect her by letting her join their group.<ref name="autogenerated589"/><ref>Thompson, David (London, 1994) "A Biographical Dictionary of Film", Martin Secker and Warburg Ltd., pg. 576.</ref> The film lost money disappearing from theatres quickly<ref> https://www.tvguide.com/movies/days-of-glory/review/112333/</ref><ref>https://www.allmovie.com/movie/days-of-glory-v12658</ref> and is described by one critic as "sincere, but plodding,"<ref name="auto3">Maltin, Leonard. “Leonard Maltin’s Classic Movie Guide”, 2005.</ref> and by two others as having too many long speeches.<ref>https://www.allmovie.com/movie/days-of-glory-v12658</ref><ref>https://www.nytimes.com/1944/06/17/archives/days-of-glory-starring-tamara-toumanova-and-gregory-peck-at-palace.html?rref=collection%2Fcollection%2Fmovie-guide</ref> Despite this, Peck's star power was evident,<ref name="autogenerated589"/><ref>https://www.allmovie.com/movie/days-of-glory-v12658</ref> even if one critic considered his acting in ''Days of Glory'' a little stiff.<ref>https://www.nytimes.com/1944/06/17/archives/days-of-glory-starring-tamara-toumanova-and-gregory-peck-at-palace.html?rref=collection%2Fcollection%2Fmovie-guide</ref> Hollywood movie producers became very interested in him, but rather than signing an exclusive long-term contract with one studio, he decided to free-lance, signing non-exclusive contracts with four studios,<ref>https://www.cbsnews.com/news/gregory-peck-dead-at-87/</ref> including an unusual dual contract with 20th Century Fox and ''Gone With the Wind'' producer David O. Selznick.<ref>https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/gregory-peck-36623.html</ref> This enabled him to choose only roles that interested him and resulted in him landing roles in several big budget films over the next few years.<ref name="autogenerated589"/>

''[[The Keys of the Kingdom]]'' (1944) features Peck as a 80-year-old Roman Catholic priest looking back at his epic undertakings during over half a century spent as a determined, self-sacrificing missionary in China.<ref name="variety1944">{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/1944/film/reviews/the-keys-of-the-kingdom-1200414440/ |title=The Keys of the Kingdom |work=Variety.com |date=December 31, 1944}}</ref><ref>Thomson, David (London, 1994) "A Biographical Dictionary of Fim", Martin Secker and Warburg Ltd., pg. 576.</ref> The film shows him aging from his 20s to 80 and he is in almost every scene.<ref name="autogenerated589"/><ref>{{cite web|author=Greg Orypeck |url=https://www.classicfilmfreak.com/2018/05/31/the-keys-of-the-kingdom-1947-starring-gregory-peck-and-thomas-mitchell/ |title=The Keys of the Kingdom (1947) starring Gregory Peck and Thomas Mitchell |work=Classic Film Freak |date=May 31, 2018 |accessdate=October 8, 2019}}</ref> At the time of release, one reviewer said the movie successfully conveyed the impact of "tolerance, service, faith and godliness" and that Peck's performance was excellent.<ref name="variety1944"/> Another evaluated the script as tedious but said Peck was forceful.<ref>https://www.nytimes.com/1944/12/30/archives/keys-of-the-kingdom-from-novel-by-aj-cronin-opens-at-rivoli-rkos.html</ref> Peck received his first nomination for the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] for his performance <ref name="auto23"/> In the twenty-first century, some critics describe the movie as overlong,<ref name="autogenerated589"/> as having stilted dialogue and dull patches,<ref>https://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-keys-of-the-kingdom-v27139/review Craig Butler, author.</ref> or as long but generally good.<ref>Maltin, Leonard. “Leonard Maltin’s Classic Movie Guide”, 2005</ref> One critic asserts the movie is simply different from what most of today's viewers are accustomed - it is "slow-moving, patient, expository, with long scenes of dialogue and character building," - and that it is inspiring with many moving scenes featuring a "sincere, believable, dynamic performance" from Peck "ranging from soft-spoken compassion to almost retaliatory loathing."<ref>{{cite web|author=Greg Orypeck |url=https://www.classicfilmfreak.com/2018/05/31/the-keys-of-the-kingdom-1947-starring-gregory-peck-and-thomas-mitchell/ |title=The Keys of the Kingdom (1947) starring Gregory Peck and Thomas Mitchell |work=Classic Film Freak |date=May 31, 2018 |accessdate=October 8, 2019}}</ref> Some other critics others agree Peck's performance is excellent.<ref>https://www.tvguide.com/movies/the-keys-of-the-kingdom/review/103109/</ref><ref>https://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-keys-of-the-kingdom-v27139/review Craig Butler, author.</ref> Peck received his first nomination for the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] and the movie had three other nominations, including for cinematography.<ref>Kinn, Gail, and Jim Plazza (New York, 2000) "The Academy Awards: The Complete History of Oscar", Black Dog and Leventhal Publishers, pg. 92.</ref> While ''Keys of the Kingdom'' is not viewed by many movie watchers today,<ref>https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036983/ (only 2200 votes on website)</ref> in the mid-1940s it catapulted him to stardom.<ref name="autogenerated589"/><ref>McGilligan, Patrick (New York: 2004), "Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light", HarperCollins Publishers Inc., pg. 357.</ref>